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Fifth Freedom, 1980-12-01

Fifth Freedom, 1980-12-01

THE FIFTH FREEDOM A PUBLICATION OF THE BUFFALO GAY COMMUNITY DECEMiER 1980 FREE NICKLE CITY:LEATHER/LEVI The following article is one of a series on the different aspects of Buffalo's gay community. I hope to be able to shed some light on the various groups, both for the straight community that may read the paper and the gay community that has alot to learn about its own. EDITOR The following interview was conducted with the president of Nickle City, the Leather/Levi/Bike/Western Club for Buffalo. sth: What is the purpose of Leather/Levi Clubs? Nickle City: It is to give an alternate lifestyle to the gay bar scene, with an orientation to the leather, levi western, and bike dress oriented people. In the last ten years it has grown to be the largest type of club in the gay scene. It is not just in this country, either. The clubs have been formed around the world. Those who join have similar interests and ideas as to what they enjoy in a social, as well as a sexual context. We are like a brotherhood or fraternity. Members of various clubs open their houses to other brothers as they may travel through the area. There is a great value put on the honesty of the club members. A club is responsible for the actions of its members, to the point of covering any damage or theft that may occur while a member is in anothers home. Basically, the club members do not get along with the gay community at large. They feel that there is too much phoniness and games that go on in the bars, An individual club may have a home bar that they frequent and may have bar nights at for out of town clubs. A great premium is placed on honesty, both to yourself and to your brothers. Also there is less discussion of the type of posessions, jobs and other material scene that many gays get caught up in. There can be many different economic and social lifestyles present in a club and all of them relate on the same level. The club atmosphere is a great equalizer. sth: How many members does Nickle City have? N.C.: We do not put alot of importance on the number of members that we have. We look more toward quality as opposed to quantity. We have a pledgeship in which the new member gets to know us and we get to know more about him. In the end we accept him and he accepts us. So most clubs are small in size. We don't expect any supermen or saints, but we do expect honesty. And we base the acceptance into the club on the man, not on his possessions or" the show he may put on. He may be a physically beautiful guy, but if that's all, we don't want him. The group is as close as a family. We can confide in our brothers things that we could not tell anyone else. All we have is available for our brothers whenever they need it You tend to find more mature individuals into the L/L scene. There are very few 18 year old members. The more settled a person gets within-himself, the more apt he is to be into this type of club. It is not just a social thing. It is being able to be yourself and not put up all your defenses and play games. sth: Does N.Y.O.L.C. (New York-Ontario Leather Club) still exist? N.C.:As far as I know they do not. Their last function was held in August 1978. So for the last two years and three months we have been the only club in the area. TJiere is no territory for a specific club and there could always be another club in Buffalo. In fact, we would welcome it. is anyone that would like to start one we would be glad to help them get started. There are even women's L/L groups around. We would like to see a group start here, too. sth: What types of clubs are there? N.C.: There are Western, Bike, Leather, S&M ,Levi and combination clubs. Nickle City is a combo club. Basically the club characteristics are the same. There is some conflict between the Leather .and Leather S&M groups. Those that are into the Leather S&M scene have "earned" the things that they wear and some resent those that just wear it because they like it. sth: What would you say is the biggest misconception about the Leather crowd? N.C.: We are not out to bully and hassle others that aren't into our scene. We're not going to beat somebody up when we go into a bar. We are responsible people and are not into pillage and rape. Our club would be liable for any damage we did while wearing our colors. And, too, people must realize that not everyone that wears Leather/Levi is a member of a club. There are alot of independent people, and when you leave a club you have to turn in your colors and are no longer associated with that club. sth: Are most people that are into the L/L scene also into S&M? N.C.: Most are in some form or another, but not all of them are. The type of club, i.e. Western, etc., and the locale would have alot of bearing on the orientation and variations of the group. You find fewer heavy leather groups, like in Arizona because the heat and the Leather are just too much. sth: Some gays look at it as a form of drag. How do you feel about that? N.C.: We look at each other as a form of drag, but it is a male oriented drag. We want to be with men who look like men. We want to present the image of the man that we feel we are. We look at those that are not members of a club to bev in drag moreso than those that are in it as part of a club uniform. sth: What type of social things are planned by the clubs? N.C.: We have what we call"runs". This is planned by a club in their home town for visiting clubs. It can be a few days to longer periods. It will include bar hopping, breakfasts, private parties (some of which are put on by the visiting clubs or another club in the city), and an awards ceremony for the group that came the farthest or had the best turnout of members. They vary as to the type of location and time of year. Much of the money that is raised, over the cost of the run, is donated to local charities. IN THIS ISSUE: PAGE NICKLE CITY: LEATHER/LEVI, IN THIS ISSUE...I EDITORIAL, LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 2 ADVERTISEMENT 3 GAY COLORING BOOK, CAPTAIN KINK, OUR COVER.4 GAY TASK FORCE, HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW..S SELECTIONS BY SAM, ANTIQUES & ART 6 HELP: ONE ANSWER, ATTENTION 7 rUI. i I i\ll i••iiiiiiiiii■ i i i i i i i i i i i i ii i o GAY WEDDING RESPONSE 9 NICKLE CITY CONT., MICHAEL, NYC KILLINGS, BI LINES.IO GAY DIRECTORY, WANT ADS, HELP CONT., 11 ADVERTISEMENT, SANTA. 12 THE FIFTH FREEDOM. VOL. 10, NO. 9 - NOVEMBER 1980 Cont. on pg. 10

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Transcript

THE FIFTH FREEDOM A PUBLICATION OF THE BUFFALO GAY COMMUNITY DECEMiER 1980 FREE NICKLE CITY:LEATHER/LEVI The following article is one of a series on the different aspects of Buffalo's gay community. I hope to be able to shed some light on the various groups, both for the straight community that may read the paper and the gay community that has alot to learn about its own. EDITOR The following interview was conducted with the president of Nickle City, the Leather/Levi/Bike/Western Club for Buffalo. sth: What is the purpose of Leather/Levi Clubs? Nickle City: It is to give an alternate lifestyle to the gay bar scene, with an orientation to the leather, levi western, and bike dress oriented people. In the last ten years it has grown to be the largest type of club in the gay scene. It is not just in this country, either. The clubs have been formed around the world. Those who join have similar interests and ideas as to what they enjoy in a social, as well as a sexual context. We are like a brotherhood or fraternity. Members of various clubs open their houses to other brothers as they may travel through the area. There is a great value put on the honesty of the club members. A club is responsible for the actions of its members, to the point of covering any damage or theft that may occur while a member is in anothers home. Basically, the club members do not get along with the gay community at large. They feel that there is too much phoniness and games that go on in the bars, An individual club may have a home bar that they frequent and may have bar nights at for out of town clubs. A great premium is placed on honesty, both to yourself and to your brothers. Also there is less discussion of the type of posessions, jobs and other material scene that many gays get caught up in. There can be many different economic and social lifestyles present in a club and all of them relate on the same level. The club atmosphere is a great equalizer. sth: How many members does Nickle City have? N.C.: We do not put alot of importance on the number of members that we have. We look more toward quality as opposed to quantity. We have a pledgeship in which the new member gets to know us and we get to know more about him. In the end we accept him and he accepts us. So most clubs are small in size. We don't expect any supermen or saints, but we do expect honesty. And we base the acceptance into the club on the man, not on his possessions or" the show he may put on. He may be a physically beautiful guy, but if that's all, we don't want him. The group is as close as a family. We can confide in our brothers things that we could not tell anyone else. All we have is available for our brothers whenever they need it You tend to find more mature individuals into the L/L scene. There are very few 18 year old members. The more settled a person gets within-himself, the more apt he is to be into this type of club. It is not just a social thing. It is being able to be yourself and not put up all your defenses and play games. sth: Does N.Y.O.L.C. (New York-Ontario Leather Club) still exist? N.C.:As far as I know they do not. Their last function was held in August 1978. So for the last two years and three months we have been the only club in the area. TJiere is no territory for a specific club and there could always be another club in Buffalo. In fact, we would welcome it. is anyone that would like to start one we would be glad to help them get started. There are even women's L/L groups around. We would like to see a group start here, too. sth: What types of clubs are there? N.C.: There are Western, Bike, Leather, S&M ,Levi and combination clubs. Nickle City is a combo club. Basically the club characteristics are the same. There is some conflict between the Leather .and Leather S&M groups. Those that are into the Leather S&M scene have "earned" the things that they wear and some resent those that just wear it because they like it. sth: What would you say is the biggest misconception about the Leather crowd? N.C.: We are not out to bully and hassle others that aren't into our scene. We're not going to beat somebody up when we go into a bar. We are responsible people and are not into pillage and rape. Our club would be liable for any damage we did while wearing our colors. And, too, people must realize that not everyone that wears Leather/Levi is a member of a club. There are alot of independent people, and when you leave a club you have to turn in your colors and are no longer associated with that club. sth: Are most people that are into the L/L scene also into S&M? N.C.: Most are in some form or another, but not all of them are. The type of club, i.e. Western, etc., and the locale would have alot of bearing on the orientation and variations of the group. You find fewer heavy leather groups, like in Arizona because the heat and the Leather are just too much. sth: Some gays look at it as a form of drag. How do you feel about that? N.C.: We look at each other as a form of drag, but it is a male oriented drag. We want to be with men who look like men. We want to present the image of the man that we feel we are. We look at those that are not members of a club to bev in drag moreso than those that are in it as part of a club uniform. sth: What type of social things are planned by the clubs? N.C.: We have what we call"runs". This is planned by a club in their home town for visiting clubs. It can be a few days to longer periods. It will include bar hopping, breakfasts, private parties (some of which are put on by the visiting clubs or another club in the city), and an awards ceremony for the group that came the farthest or had the best turnout of members. They vary as to the type of location and time of year. Much of the money that is raised, over the cost of the run, is donated to local charities. IN THIS ISSUE: PAGE NICKLE CITY: LEATHER/LEVI, IN THIS ISSUE...I EDITORIAL, LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 2 ADVERTISEMENT 3 GAY COLORING BOOK, CAPTAIN KINK, OUR COVER.4 GAY TASK FORCE, HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW..S SELECTIONS BY SAM, ANTIQUES & ART 6 HELP: ONE ANSWER, ATTENTION 7 rUI. i I i\ll i••iiiiiiiiii■ i i i i i i i i i i i i ii i o GAY WEDDING RESPONSE 9 NICKLE CITY CONT., MICHAEL, NYC KILLINGS, BI LINES.IO GAY DIRECTORY, WANT ADS, HELP CONT., 11 ADVERTISEMENT, SANTA. 12 THE FIFTH FREEDOM. VOL. 10, NO. 9 - NOVEMBER 1980 Cont. on pg. 10